Big thanks to Paula Solanoy for creating this year’s poster design.  I love the concept and the photos by Erik Peterson, Jill Collins, and John Crosby really tell the story of the MOMAR.  Look at all those sponsor logos too!  What a great team we had last year and I’m hoping they all sign on for this year too!

Once again, there were so many great moments from the 2011 season of the Atmosphere Mind Over Mountain Adventure Racing Series.  We started the year off in a brand new venue, Burnaby, and ended in Cumberland for the 12 year in a row.  I had hundreds of photos to review and came up with 20 images and two videos.  Enjoy!!!

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1. WE WERE THE FIRST  – Photo by Mark Teasdale  —- A partial group shot just before the start of the inaugural race in Burnaby, BC.   The weather was ideal — cool in the morning and bright sunny skies in the afternoon.  The race started and finished at Barnett Marine Park, a bit of a hidden gem in the Lower Mainland.

2. WHAT A PADDLE LEG  – Photo by Mark Teasdale  —- Todd Nowack leads this group of paddlers on a 10km paddle in Burrard Inlet /Indian Arm and up to Jug Island and back.    Todd won this race and Cumberland (another series sweep!)  and adds two more to his overall win tally.

3. SWEET SINGLE TRACK ON BURNABY MOUNTAIN  – Photo by Matthew Beckett  —- Frontrunners’ Stefan Jakobson cruises down the trails during the MOMAR Burnaby.  Frontrunners is our longest running sponsor having been with us for the past 12 years. Love you guys!

4. COMPASSIONATE VOLUNTEER  – Photo by Andrea Beckett  —- The MOMAR has the BEST team of volunteers.  They are always so hardworking, enthusiastic, and ready to help a racer out when needed.  Here, longtime volunteer, Thomas Howard (and his chicken) takes the time to click a shot of a wiped out racer before helping him up (and asking if he’s ok).  What a guy!

5. CELEBRITY APPEARANCE   – Photo by John Crosby  —- Not only did we have one of the best female adventure racers (Jen Segger) on the start line of the MOMAR Burnaby but we also had Raid the North’s race director, Geoff Langford, too!

6. CHAMPAGNE WISHES – Photo by Mark Teasdale  —- Team Beer O’Clock (Nicole Gibbons, Beth Henschel, Alison Perras, and Jaimie Isaac) from Vancouver celebrates their first place finish (4F) with champagne and big smiles. They found all 36 checkpoints in 7h and 13m.  Great job!

7. HEART AND SOLE  – Photo by John Crosby  —- The Momamas were the winners of the Sole Spirit Award. Tons of spirit all day long.

8. VIDEO:  WATCH THE FOOTAGE   – Video by Erik Nachtrieb of 1iOpen Productions  —- Big thanks to Erik for coming out and shooting video and putting together this stellar video that captures the essence of our inaugural race in Burnaby. Click  here to watch.

9. WELCOME TO THE FOG – Photo by Erik Peterson —- Paddlers set out on Comox Lake for the start of the Cumberland MOMAR.  This was the foggiest morning that we ever had and it made for a really eerie but calm paddle stage.

10. NEW CHECKPOINT – Photo by Erik Peterson —- There has been 12 races in Cumberland and finding new terrain is always a treat.  Here, a new trail was cut allowing us access to a set of fantastic bluffs with a great view of the glaciers to the west.  Team Frontrunners Westshore (Nick Walker and Eric Findlay) look pro as they approach CP 3.  I predict a big year at the MOMAR for this duo in 2012.

11. A FAMILY AFFAIR – Photo by John Crosby  — It was great having Vernon’s Sheila Sovereign take on the 30km sport course with her niece Karly.  The Vernon Morning Star reported: “We did really well with the route finding, but we really had to take our time and think it through,” said Sheila. “I did the Squamish MOMAR and the trail finding was way easier. This was actually pretty tricky so we really had to pay attention.”

12. LOST AND CONFUSED – Photo by Erik Peterson —- We’ve all been there… you know… in the Orienteering Stage of the MOMAR… your navigator isn’t quite sure where to go as your teammate waits (im)patiently for a quick decision. Right?  Sarah Newman and Geoff Huenemann from Bike Over Teakettle figure things out in the final stage of the MOMAR Cumberland course.

13. SPIRIT OF TWO BODIES IN ONE – Photo by John Crosby —- In the most touching story in the history of the MOMAR, Steven Crerar from Campbell River races the MOMAR Cumberland in memory of his brother  Bryan Crerar, who was killed by a drunk driver in 2009.  Steven and Bryan had raced together for four previous MOMARs and this was now Steven’s first solo.  More on Steven’s story, click here.

14. FOUND IT! – Photo by Erik Peterson —- Aside from crossing the finish line, is there any better feeling than finding a Checkpoint?  Sometimes they can be found easily and sometimes they are hidden; either way, seeing the orange and white flag is a great feeling.  In this photo, ELM Fearless Leaders (Kathy Campbell and Lynn Swift) punch the CP at the top of DCDH.

15. OH THOSE CUMBY TRAILS – Photo by Erik Peterson —- A forest is sometimes just a forest but when you get a community of dedicated trail builders you can end up with a forest with it’s own very unique identity.  The trail network behind the Village of Cumberland is simply the best on the Vancouver Island.  In the first years of the MOMAR Cumberland, we took racers on the Crafty Butcher trail, but subsequent logging kept it out of future course routes. Last year, the trail was refurbished and a wicked double teeter todder was added making this the must ride trail of the race. Super fun, super fast, super buff.

16. OH THOSE CUMBY TRAILS – Photo by Erik Peterson —- Just south of the start/finish line for the MOMAR Cumberland sits a steep boulder filled forest and rugged cliffs.  The terrain here is super cool and is the home to a rock climbers, wasp nests, bears and our final orienteering stage. It’s one of my favorite places in Cumberland.

17. YOU’RE ONLY AS FAST AS YOUR SLOWEST TEAMMATE – Photo by John Crosby —- Last Year’s Losers (Irene and Neil Borecky) cross the line with almost all of their limbs attached…. Runner up for the Sole Spirit Award. What a riot.

18. ATMOSPHERE  – Photo by John Crosby —- A big BIG thanks goes out to our title sponsor Atmosphere who have been with us for the past three years.  Without their support and the support of all of our other sponsors, the MOMAR would not be possible (or at least you wouldn’t get a cool shirt, shiny medal, tasty dinner, rockin’ party, accurate maps, heaps of prizes, a crazy MC, etc… ).  And it was great to have a staff team from the Victoria store compete too! In this photo: Steven Craig, Hannah Mashon, William Rankine, and Nick Brame.

19. ROCK STAR – Photo by Erik Peterson —- What a great moment it was when MOMAR’s own event coordinator, Tamara Rhodes, took the stage and sang a few songs with Megalicious at the MOMAR Cumberland after-party.  This capped off another killer after-party!

20. THREE AMIGOS – Photo by ‘some dude with my camera’ —- Dave Norona, Normon Thibault, and me (Bryan Tasaka).  These guys were at the first MOMAR back in 2000 and they are still here today — 35 races later.  Wow. What a run.

21. THE REAL HEROS OF THE MOMAR – Photo by Erik Peterson —- The MOMAR is produced by a core group of hard working, organized, and dedicated event team.  Thank you Tamara Hung, Janine Tasaka, Sheron Chrysler, Elaine McHugh, Lisa Au, Liz Tribe and Gary Robbins!!!  (Note: Dave Norona represents Lisa, Liz, and Gary for the purposes of this team picture)

22. THE NASTYASS ADVENTURE RACER – Video by Kootenay Kaos —- Words cannot properly explain what the Kootenay Kaos are all about… it’s best if you just watch the video.

That’s it!  Nothing but great memories! Let us know what you think by posting a comment below.

The winners of the 2010 Get Out There Magazine Readers’ Choice Awards have been announced and the Atmosphere Mind Over Mountain Adventure Racing Series wins in three categories.  For the third year in a row, the MOMAR was voted Best Adventure Race, Best Post Race Party, and Best Event T-Shirt in Western Canada. 

Here are two photos from the MOMAR After-Party with a packed dance floor and great live music.  Interesting fact:  Over 95% of participants and volunteers stay for the banquet/awards/party and with guests, there are close to 500 people that fill the party hall.  I’ve been told that some teams race just so they can come to the MOMAR After-Party. 

Here are our award winning shirts.  The blue one was designed by my brother Rod Tasaka who owns and operates Surface Collective — a MOMAR sponsor. The owl shirt was designed by Paula Solanoy who does our poster designs.  The MOMAR has been producing quality shirts with a female cut since 2002.  The back of our shirts are not covered in “logo soup” and only have the Atmosphere and Make-A-Wish logos in a small area on the bottom of the shirt. We focus on a cool graphic design that makes the shirt wearable.  Numerous people have told me that the MOMAR shirt is the only race shirt they keep and wear. Good and sustainable, right!?

The MOMAR would like to thank its staff, sponsors, volunteers, suppliers, and participants for helping us put on a top notch race experience for everyone involved.  We would also like to thank everyone who took the time and voted for us.  And thanks to Marissa and her team at Get Out There Magazine for the award and recognition.

LIST OF 2011 AWARD WINNERS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

New Westminster, BC – October 12, 2010. The Atmosphere Mind Over Mountain Adventure Racing Series (MOMAR) is proud to announce a $3,500.00 donation to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of BC/Yukon, collected during the 2010 race season.  Make-A-Wish has been the MOMAR’s official charity since 2007, and this contribution brings the cumulative donation total to $17,000.00.

“At Make-A-Wish, we are being asked to grant more wishes than ever before, and we are so grateful to everyone at MOMAR for their continued support in helping us share the magic of a wish with these special kids,” says Make-A-Wish’s Executive Director, Ross Hetherington. Make-A-Wish enriches the lives of children with life threatening medical conditions through its wish granting work.

“Make-A-Wish is a great organization and we are very happy to support such an amazing cause,” says Event Director, Bryan Tasaka.  “The MOMAR participants, racers and volunteers have been extremely generous in supporting our various fundraising efforts.

For more information on the the MOMAR series, visit www.mindovermountain.com, and for information on the Make-A-Wish Foundation of BC/Yukon, please visit www.makeawishbc.ca.

Thanks to the great guys at the BC Bike Race, we had an entry to give away for their race in 2009.  If you haven’t heard of this event, it is a seven day mountain bike stage race that starts in Shawnigan Lake and ends in Whistler.  It has been dubbed the ultimate singletrack experience and it lives up to its name in a big way with each stage featuring amazing amounts of XC riding.

The entry was auctioned off at the MOMAR Cumberland awards banquet with 100% of the proceeds going to our official charity, the Make-A-Wish Foundation of BC.  The entry is worth $4500+gst and with many fanatical mountain bikers in the room the bidding war began.  Active bidders included Brian McCurdy, Harold Williams, Wil Lim, and few others, but it was Curtis Labounty–along with partner Marshall House–who prevailed with a final bid price of $4100!

Thanks to everyone for being part of the live auction especially BC Bike Race for the donation!!!

Congratulations to Ryan and Nicole Worsfold from Brentwood Bay, BC, who were the lucky winners of the trip for two to Hawaii.  The prize package sponsored by Schick Xtreme3 and the Make-A-Wish Foundation includes flights via WestJet, seven nights of accommodation and an adventure package of their choice.  Have FUN!!!

Schick Xtreme3 reps, Francis and Greg, were on hand at the Cumberland awards ceremony to present the prize to Ryan and Nicole.